Special Exhibits
Representing the rarest of the rare
Weapons Collection
Rifles, Carbines and a variety of pistols are all part of the significant collection of weapons on display at Port Columbus. Edged weapons, including officer’s swords, US and Confederate Navy cutlasses and boarding pikes, make especially interesting viewing. Other weapons related items such as belts, cartridge boxes and even an original Confederate Navy gunpowder passbox for a 7-inch Brooke Rifle are displayed.
Cannons and Ordnance
Port Columbus is home to a variety of naval guns and projectiles, ranging from 11″ Brooke smoothbores to a newly acquired 12-lb naval howitzer. Dahglren, Brooke and Parrot guns are represented along with 32-lb carronades from the CSS Chattahoochee.
Besides the main cannon displays, a 7″ Brooke rifle, mounted overlooking the river on a training deck, is the largest regularly fired civil war gun in existence today. This gun, fired during special events, was recovered along with several other 7″ and 6.4″ Brookes, from the CSS Jackson. Inside the museum, a variety of projectiles displayed include a 455-lb solid cannon ball and a 13-inch mortal shell.
Plans call for the 30-lb Parrot rifle and the 12-lb howitzer to be mounted on the USS Water Witch recreation, as these guns are of the same type as the ship’s wartime armament.
Catesby a.p. R. Jones Uniform
This coat belonged to Catesby Jones, commander of the CSS Virginia (Merrimac) on the day of its historical battle with the USS Monitor, and is in nearly pristine condition.
CSS Jackson Armor
Nearly 200 pieces of original iron plate from the Jackson are on display in the boat shed on Port Columbus grounds. Each 14-foot long piece is 2 inches thick by 7 inches wide and weighs more than 700 pounds. Behind the cladding is an 1860’s Gulf Coast schooner, the Virginia, used as a blockade runner and built in Mobile, Alabama. Other craft on display in the boat shed outside the museum are the reproduction scale ironclad vessels and reproduction row and motor launches used in living history demonstrations both at the museum and at remote locations.
CSS Chattahoochee / J.J. Guthrie Artifacts
In addition to the stern section of the CSS Chattahoochee, Port Columbus was able to acquire some of the personal possessions of the second commander of the CSS Chattahoochee, J.J. Guthrie. His sword and original order from the Confederate Navy Department to take command of the Chattahoochee are on display in a new exhibit installed near the remains of the ship.
Powder Monkey Uniforms
Since the navies were the smallest branches of the Civil War armed forces, uniform pieces are incredibly rare. Many excellent examples are shown. One, a white shirt was owned by a ship’s boy, features his name stenciled on the inside, as well as personalized embroidered accents. A Confederate Navy enlisted hat is the only one known in the nation.
John T. Luck Collection
Unique among the diverse uniforms represented at Port Columbus are the white jacket, straw hat and blood-stained vest of U.S. Navy Assistant Surgeon John T. Luck.
John T. Luck was commissioned an assistant surgeon in the U.S. Navy on January 24, 1862. While assigned to the USS Ottawa off Charleston, South Carolina, Luck was sent ashore to tend to wounded Union soldiers after the failed attack of the African-American 54th Massachusetts Regiment against Confederate Battery Wagner, as portrayed in the movie “Glory.”
During a truce called to gather the injured and dead, Luck was captured after wandering too close to the Confederate lines. As a prisoner, he witnessed the burying of the 54th Massachusetts’ commander, Colonel Robert G. Shaw, with his fallen soldiers, rather than returning his body to the Federals, as was customary.
When Surgeon Luck was later released from his status as a Prisoner of War and returned north, his eyewitness account of the incident stirred much controversy.
Most Shocking Exhibit
Artifacts recovered after being underwater pose a special challenge for museums, as they must be cleaned of as much rust and corrosion as possible before being displayed, without causing damage to the artifact itself.
Years of experimentation with different techniques led experts to the method of electrolysis. In essence, the artifacts are placed in a tank filled with water and chemical additives, and connected to a negative electrical charge. Also in the tank is a “sacrificial” rod or plate of either brass or steel, connected to a positive charge. When the current is activated the rust and corrosion will actually be drawn off of the artifact and onto the sacrificial metal.
Over time, much of the corrosion will be removed, leaving the artifact in considerably better condition, without the risk of damage caused by more aggressive cleaning techniques. Artifacts recovered from salt water require a much longer cleaning period, as salts can actually work their way deep into the pores of the metal and must be drawn out.
Our “shocking” display currently houses a boat hook and partially exploded cannon ball recovered from the CSS Chattahoochee wreckage. Other larger scale examples include the H.L. Hunley, in Charleston, SC, and the USS Monitor turret at the Mariners Museum in Newport News, VA.
